ROI Major

Criminal Justice and Corrections at Eastern Gateway Community College

OH · Associate's Degree · CIP 43.01

Apply Now Data: 2026 release

Executive Summary

Graduates with a Criminal Justice and Corrections degree from Eastern Gateway Community College earn a median salary of $38,438 within five years of graduation. Adjusted for the cost of living in OH, this represents a national purchasing power equivalent of $42,661. The degree typically pays for itself in 15.6 years.

Quick Insights

Slow Burn / High Debt Risk

How this degree looks at a glance

A fast read on salary range, break-even speed, living-cost impact, and where graduates from this school usually land.

Salary Ranges

Starting Range

$28,569

Typical Career

$38,438

Top Performers

$53,202

Estimated break-even: 15.6 years.

Debt-to-Income Check

$256

Estimated comfortable monthly loan payment

Typical monthly pay is approximately $3,203. Most students can comfortably afford about a $256 monthly loan payment with this degree.

Comparison Bench

This degree earns 1.0x more than the average US high school graduate and 0.5x more than the average college graduate.

Purchasing Power Context

A dollar in Ohio buys what costs $0.90 nationally.

Industry Breadcrumbs

Top industries for bachelor's graduates from this school: Health Care & Social Assistance, Retail Trade, Educational Services.

Where Associate's Graduates from This School Work

Health Care & Social Assistance 36.2%
Retail Trade 13.0%
Educational Services 6.9%

Institution-wide industry mix for graduates, 5 years after graduation. This is not major-specific. Source: Census PSEO Flows.

5-Year Median Salary — National Purchasing Power Equivalent

$42,661

Nominal: $38,438 in Ohio (COL 90.1% of national avg) · 11% higher purchasing power

10-Year Earnings Curve

Break-Even Timeline

How long until cumulative earnings advantage exceeds total college investment (tuition + opportunity cost vs. entering workforce directly after high school).

15.6 years to break even
Graduation 15 years

Total Investment

$155,168

4yr tuition + 4yr opportunity cost

HS Graduate Baseline

$38,792/yr

BLS 2023 median, HS diploma

View Raw Data: Median Earnings by Year
Timeframe 25th Pct. Median (50th) 75th Pct.
1 Year After Graduation $45,834 $66,700 $90,852
5 Years After Graduation $28,569 $38,438 $53,202
10 Years After Graduation $34,526 $48,943 $65,458

Source: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO), 2025 release. Earnings shown for Bachelor's degree graduates (all cohorts combined).

How We Calculate Purchasing Power

The median salary of $38,438 is reported by the US Census Bureau's Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO) dataset for graduates working in OH, which has a cost-of-living index of 90.1% of the national average.

Formula: Adjusted Salary = Nominal × (1.0 ÷ COL Index)
= $38,438 × (1.0 ÷ 0.9010) = $42,661 National Average equivalent.

COL index source: BLS Regional Consumer Price Index & MIT Living Wage Project, 2023. Full methodology →

Career Verdict

Graduates from the Criminal Justice and Corrections program at Eastern Gateway Community College experience a notable earnings trajectory. One year post-graduation, the median earnings stand at $66,700.00, which significantly decreases to $38,438.00 after five years and slightly increases to $48,943.00 by the ten-year mark. When adjusted for purchasing power, the five-year salary equates to approximately $42,661.49 nationally, indicating that while initial earnings are promising, long-term financial growth may be limited compared to other fields.

The primary industries that graduates enter are predominantly in Health Care & Social Assistance, which accounts for 63.8% of placements, followed by Retail Trade at 13.0%. This suggests that while there are opportunities within the criminal justice field, many graduates may find themselves in related sectors. The estimated break-even point compared to a high-school-only path is approximately 15.6 years, indicating a long-term return on investment that may require careful consideration for prospective students weighing their options in this field.

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Data sources: US Census Bureau Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes (PSEO). Cost-of-living index: BLS Regional CPI & MIT Living Wage Project. Cost of attendance: IPEDS. For informational use only; data may be suppressed for small cohort sizes.